Tata Nano

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Tata Nano is a rear-engined, four-passenger city car built by Tata Motors, aimed primarily at the Indian market. It was first presented at the 9th annual Auto Expo on 10 January 2008, at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi, India.[4] Tata Motors commercially launched Nano on March 23, 2009, with bookings from April 9 to April 25.[5]The sales of the car will begin in July 2009,[6] with a starting price of Rs 115,000 (rupees), cheaper than the Maruti 800, its main competitor and next cheapest Indian car priced at 184,641 Rupees.[7][8][9] Tata had sought to produce the least expensive production car in the world[10] — aiming for a starting price of Rs.100,000 (approximately US$2,000 in March 2009).[11][12]

In early 2008 the news magazine Newsweek identified the Nano as a part of a "new breed of 21st-century cars" that embody "a contrarian philosophy of smaller, lighter, cheaper" and portend a new era in inexpensive personal transportation — and potentially, "global gridlock".[13] The Wall Street Journal confirmed a global trend toward small cars, which includes the Nano.[14]

"Nano" means "small" in Gujarati[15], the language of the founders of the Tata Group. In English, the prefix "nano-" is often used to mean small. This derives from the Greek root 'nanos', meaning dwarf.